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Flemish geographer Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594). Mercator's most enduring contribution was his Mercator Projection, or Mercator Chart. The Mercator Projection became the standard map for nautical use, because it depicted accurate shapes of land mass and also accurate directions used for determining bearing. It did so at the expense of scale, which was distorted. His work was continued by his son, Rumold Mercator. Colored Version of BD8016.